1. Purpose and Objectives

The purpose of this policy is to describe and identify the range of roles and responsibilities that may be performed by academic staff in coursework teaching and learning at The University of Queensland.

2. Definitions, Terms, Acronyms

There are no definitions in this policy. Roles are defined within section 5.

3. Policy Scope/Coverage

This policy applies to incumbents in the position of academic leadership and coordinative roles as outlined in section 5 below.

4. Policy Statement

UQ values both the quality of its academic programs and excellence in all aspects of teaching and learning. Quality and consistency of approach to all aspects of teaching and learning are achieved in part through coordination of teaching-related activities at School, Program, Faculty and University levels. These include curriculum development, assessment, program review, teaching quality evaluation, student academic advising and oversight of academic integrity and misconduct. Coordination of these activities is achieved by assigning a range of key roles and responsibilities to academic staff, and by acknowledging these roles through workload allocation and through the confirmation and promotion process where there is evidence of quality and impact.

5. Teaching and Learning Roles and Responsibilities

The coordination of teaching-related activities at School, Program, Faculty and University levels is achieved through a number of identified roles (described in more detail below).

At the University level, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) is responsible for directing the University’s commitment to providing high-quality university teaching and student learning outcomes. This involves promoting a culture of excellence in teaching and learning, providing a distinctive student experience enriched by the University’s research capacity and the regular review of strategies, policies and practices, through the University Teaching and Learning Committee and the Committee for Academic Programs Policy.

At Faculty level, the Executive Dean has overall accountability for academic programs offered by the Faculty, and the Associate Dean (Academic) is responsible, under the direction of the executive dean, for overseeing teaching and learning and academic programs through the Faculty Teaching and Learning Committee.

At School level, the Chair of Teaching and Learning, under the direction of the head of school, oversees teaching and learning through the School Teaching and Learning Committee. Course Coordinators are responsible for coordinating the preparation, delivery and assessment of courses taught by their school and the Chief Examiner for ensuring quality assurance in summative assessment.

At both Faculty and School levels, an Integrity Officer promotes the values and practice of academic integrity, provides guidance on educational strategies associated with academic integrity, and provides specific advice on academic misconduct to decision-makers.

At Program level, Program Convenors and Major Convenors may have responsibility for sequences of study. Academic Advisers may also provide advice about degree programs.

Other roles may be assigned by the executive dean or head of school. In this case, the organisational unit is responsible for developing an appropriate position description that adequately indicates the dimension of each role in relation to key responsibilities and workload.

5.1 Faculty

5.1.1 Executive Dean*

The Executive Dean is responsible, through the Provost, to the Vice-Chancellor, for the academic and administrative leadership and management of the Schools and Centres within the Faculty, to achieve the goals of the Faculty and to further the mission and strategic aims of the University. In relation to teaching and learning, the executive dean has overall accountability for the academic programs offered by the Faculty, including ensuring the quality of teaching and the provision of effective learning services for students by Schools and Centres in the Faculty, in conjunction with the Associate Dean (Academic), and as set out in the University's Learning Plan.

5.1.2 Associate Dean (Academic)*

A member of academic staff who is responsible to their respective executive dean for the strategic oversight of all matters relating to teaching and learning, for academic administration and for the coordination of student administration in the Faculty.

5.1.3 Chair, Faculty Teaching and Learning Committee*

A member of academic staff who is responsible to their respective executive dean for providing active leadership to the Committee and to the Faculty in promoting excellence in student learning and teaching as well as assuring the quality of learning and teaching.

5.1.4 Integrity Officer*

A member of academic staff who is responsible for promoting the values and practice of academic integrity to students and staff; providing guidance to academic staff about the delivery of education strategies associated with academic integrity; and providing guidance and support to decision-makers in relation to student academic misconduct. At faculty level, it must be the Associate Dean (Academic), or their officially appointed written nominee.

5.2.2 Chair, School Teaching and Learning Committee*

A member of academic staff who is responsible to their respective head of school for providing active leadership to the Committee and to the School in promoting excellence in student learning and teaching as well as assuring the quality of learning and teaching.

5.2.3 Chief Examiner*

A member of academic staff responsible to their respective head of school who is appointed for a school, discipline or program, and who is responsible for ensuring quality assurance in summative assessment.

5.2.4 Integrity Officer*

A member of academic staff who is responsible for promoting the values and practice of academic integrity to students and staff; providing guidance to academic staff about the delivery of education strategies associated with academic integrity; and providing guidance and support to decision-makers in relation to student academic misconduct. At school level, it must be the chair of the School Teaching and Learning Committee, or their officially appointed written nominee.

5.2.5 Course Coordinator*

A member of academic staff who is responsible for coordinating the preparation, delivery and assessment in a course.

5.3 Programs and majors

5.3.1 Program Convenor

A member of academic staff who is responsible for coordinating a particular program (e.g. Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science).

Program Convenors oversee development and review of programs and may provide assistance to major convenors, academic advisers, course coordinators and year coordinators in course development and implementation.

5.3.2 Major Convenor

A member of academic staff, under the supervision of the head of school, and in collaboration with convenor(s) of the program(s) in which the major is offered, who oversees the development and management and conducts periodic evaluations of an approved sequence of study in a field of disciplinary focus.

5.3.3 Academic Adviser

A member of academic or professional staff, either at the Faculty or School level, who can provide expert advice about degree programs and disciplines within those programs, which assists students to make well informed decisions on enrolment, degree study plans, and academic progression in degree programs.

5.3.4 Year Coordinator

A member of academic staff who oversees program or major curriculum and course delivery for a given year in the program, as for instance the Year Two Coordinator in the Bachelor of Pharmacy

1. Purpose and Objectives

The purpose of these guidelines is to describe and identify the responsibilities of a range of roles that may be performed by academic staff in coursework teaching and learning at The University of Queensland.

These Guidelines may be used, within a School or Faculty, as a checklist to ensure that all significant responsibilities are formally allocated to a specific role and that the holder of that role is accountable for discharging the responsibilities in question.

2. Definitions, Terms, Acronyms

2.1 Roles currently defined in other University policies

Some of these roles are identified and the scope of their responsibilities has been defined in other University policy statements. These include:

Associate Dean (Academic) – a member of academic staff who is responsible to their respective executive dean for the strategic oversight of all matters relating to teaching and learning, for academic administration and for the coordination of student administration in the Faculty. PPL 1.20.07 Roles and Responsibilities of Associate Deans (Academic) outlines the roles and responsibilities of Associate Deans (Academic) in relation to teaching and learning.

Chief Examiner – a member of academic staff responsible to their respective head of school who is appointed for a school, discipline or program, and who is responsible for ensuring quality assurance in summative assessment. PPL 3.10.02b Assessment – Procedures outlines the role of the chief examiner.

Integrity Officer – an academic staff member who is responsible for promoting the values and practice of academic integrity to students and staff; providing guidance to academic staff about the delivery of education strategies associated with academic integrity; and providing guidance and support to decision-makers in relation to student academic misconduct. A person appointed to this role must be:

at school level – the chair of the School Teaching and Learning Committee, or their officially appointed written nominee;

at faculty level – the Associate Dean (Academic), or their officially appointed written nominee;

2.2 Roles not currently defined in other University policies

Other roles are also important but are not otherwise represented in University policy. It is acknowledged that the nomenclature used below is not universally applied across the Faculties and Schools. These include:

Chair, Faculty Teaching and Learning Committee– a member of academic staff who is responsible to their respective executive dean for providing active leadership to the Committee and to the Faculty in promoting excellence in student learning and teaching as well as assuring the quality of learning and teaching.

Chair, School Teaching and Learning Committee– a member of academic staff who is responsible to their respective head of school for providing active leadership to the Committee and to the School in promoting excellence in student learning and teaching as well as assuring the quality of learning and teaching.

Course Coordinator – a member of academic staff who is responsible for coordinating the preparation, delivery and assessment in a course.

Program Convenor – a member of academic staff who is responsible for coordinating a particular program (e.g., Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science). Program Convenors oversee development and review of programs and may provide assistance to major convenors, academic advisers, course coordinators and year coordinators in course development and implementation.

Major Convenor – a member of academic staff, under the supervision of the head of school, and in collaboration with director(s) of the program(s) in which the major is offered, oversees the development and management and conducts periodic evaluations of an approved sequence of study in a field of disciplinary focus.

Academic Adviser – a member of academic or professional staff, either at the Faculty or School level, who can provide expert advice about degree programs and disciplines within those programs, which assists students to make well informed decisions on enrolment, degree study plans, and academic progression in degree programs.

Year Coordinator – a member of academic staff who oversees program or major curriculum and course delivery for a given year in the program, as for instance the Year Two Coordinator in the Bachelor of Pharmacy.

3. Guidelines Scope/Coverage

The guidelines may apply to incumbents in the position of academic leadership and coordinative roles as outlined in section 5 below.

4. Guidelines Statement

The Faculty or School may assign responsibilities to a role in order to ensure academic leadership in promoting excellence in teaching and learning.

It is acknowledged that the way in which particular responsibilities are incorporated into roles identified in section 2.2 is not uniform across the Faculties and Schools. For example, a responsibility allocated to a Program Convenor in one setting might be allocated to a Major Convenor in another setting.

In order to accommodate and validate these cross-University differences, a matrix is provided that demonstrates the way in which these roles are variably mapped to the responsibilities.

It is recognised that some of these roles require specialist knowledge and skills and that appropriate professional development opportunities should be considered for staff new to these roles.

These guidelines were endorsed by the Teaching and Learning Committee on 23 March 2010 and were developed to provide a suggested description of activities undertaken by the Committee and as a guide for discussion at the School level.

providing leadership in course and curriculum development and implementation, quality assurance and improvement and professional accreditation where required;

negotiating with a range of stakeholders the goals and academic content of the course, how the course will be assessed and what mix of teaching methods will be used;

managing course quality and continuous improvement processes;

ensuring processes are implemented, reviewed and maintained to provide appropriate information on the course to students and other staff as appropriate.

The Coordinator also has primary responsibility for ensuring that consistent, accurate and timely information is provided to students on all aspects of the course. Course Coordinators need to be fully familiar with key university policies on teaching and learning. In team-taught courses, the coordinator has an important role in ensuring integration of teaching and assessment across different sections of and different contributors to the course.

Liaison

A key function of the Coordinator role is the liaison with stakeholders including:

students in the course;

all contributors to teaching in the course (including tutors);

coordinator(s) of the program(s) to which the course contributes;

Chair of the relevant School Teaching and Learning Committee;

the Chief Examiner in the School (if different from above);

school administrative staff;

other professional staff, e.g., staff supporting laboratory, field or computer teaching.

5.7 Program Convenor

The Program Convenor’s responsibilities may include:

management and administration of the program, including liaison with course coordinators, the head(s) of school(s), the chair(s) of teaching and learning and the major convenors where appropriate; this may include chairing a program management committee;

oversight of curriculum, assessment, and pedagogy for the program and its constituent courses, especially in relation to program coherence, academic standards and graduate attributes;

monitoring the student experience and graduate outcomes through SECaTs and other internal and external quality assurance data sets/measures;

alignment of the program and its constituent courses with faculty and university policies and strategic objectives (e.g., internationalisation of the curriculum, the incorporation of flexible learning options, and the recognition of indigenous knowledge);

reporting on the program to relevant boards of studies and/or teaching and learning committees, including oversight of course and program changes associated with the program and strategic planning for the program;

providing course and program planning advice for enrolled students including advice on pathways to Honours and postgraduate study where appropriate;

providing careers advice associated with the program and its potential graduate outcomes;

liaison with external stakeholders, including professional associations, potential employers of graduates, graduates and alumni, secondary schools, and accreditation and registration authorities where appropriate;

promoting the program accurately and effectively in University materials (e.g., websites) and at relevant University events (e.g., Orientation and Open Day).

5.8 Major Convenor

The Major Convenor’s responsibilities may include:

management and administration of the major, including liaison with course coordinators, the head(s) of school(s), the chair(s) of or teaching and learning and the convenor(s) of the program(s) in which the major is offered;

oversight of curriculum, assessment, and pedagogy for the major and its constituent courses, especially in relation to program coherence, academic standards and graduate attributes;

monitoring the student experience and graduate outcomes through SECaTs and other internal and external quality assurance data sets/measures;

alignment of the major and its constituent courses with faculty and university policies and strategic objectives (e.g., internationalisation of the curriculum, the incorporation of flexible learning options, and the recognition of indigenous knowledge);

reporting on the major to relevant boards of studies and/or teaching and learning committees, including oversight of course and program changes associated with the major and strategic planning for the major;

providing course, program and careers planning advice for students including advice on pathways to Honours and postgraduate study where appropriate;

providing careers advice associated with the major and its potential graduate outcomes;

liaison with external stakeholders, including professional associations, potential employers of graduates, graduates and alumni, secondary schools, and accreditation and registration authorities where appropriate;

promoting the major accurately and effectively in University materials (e.g., websites) and at relevant University events (e.g., Orientation and Open Day).

5.9 Academic Adviser

Academic Advisers are assigned by a Faculty or a School and may be responsible for providing academic progress support for students.

Responsibilities may include:

providing students with advice on:

program and study options;

enrolment options;

academic progress;

making appropriate referrals for students to University services;

making recommendations to other decision makers in relation to a student’s academic progress;

5.10 Year Coordinator

Year Coordinator: a member of academic staff who oversees program or major curriculum and course delivery for a given year in the program, as for instance the Year Two Coordinator in the Bachelor of Pharmacy.

The Year Coordinator’s responsibilities may include:

management and administration of the curriculum for a particular year-level in a program or major, including liaison with course coordinators, the head(s) of school(s), the chair(s) of or teaching and learning and the director(s) of the program(s) in which the major is offered;

oversight of curriculum, assessment, and pedagogy for a particular year-level in a program or major and its constituent courses, especially in relation to program coherence, academic standards and graduate attributes;

monitoring the student experience and graduate outcomes through SECaTs and other internal and external quality assurance data sets/measures;

alignment of the particular year-level in a program or major and its constituent courses with faculty and university policies and strategic objectives (e.g., internationalisation of the curriculum, the incorporation of flexible learning options, and the recognition of indigenous knowledge);

reporting on the particular year-level in a program or major to relevant boards of studies and/or teaching and learning committees, including oversight of course and program changes associated with the major and strategic planning for the major;

providing course, program and careers planning advice for students including advice on pathways to Honours and postgraduate study where appropriate;

providing careers advice associated with the major or program and its potential graduate outcomes;

liaison with external stakeholders, including professional associations, potential employers of graduates, graduates and alumni, secondary schools, and accreditation and registration authorities where appropriate.

Suggested responsibilities for roles identified in section 2.2

Role/Responsibility

Chair, T&L Comm

Program Convenor

Major Convenor

Course Coordinator

Academic Adviser

Year Coordinator

Refer students to University services

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✔

✔

✔

✔

Lead activities in teaching and learning

✔

✔

✔

Liaise with HoS, ADA, ChEx, ProgConv, ChT&LComm

✔

✔

✔

✔

✔

Participate in Sch Exec Comm

✔

Oversee QA process and documentation at the appropriate level and report as appropriate on design and delivery

✔

✔

✔

✔

✔

Take strategic initiative in relation to T&L

✔

✔

✔

Manage curriculum design, delivery and evaluation at the appropriate level

✔

✔

✔

✔

✔

Manage staff delivering the curriculum

✔

✔

✔

✔

Provide advice at the relevant level to students about progress, study options, rules, and career outcomes